Bloomberg Philanthropies has announced that it will invest an additional $30 million in the Sierra Club to help secure the replacement of half the USA’s coal fleet with clean energy by 2017. The new round of funding builds on a previous funding commitment, raising the foundation’s overall investment in the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal campaign to $80 million and further boosting the Sierra Club’s capacity to move the US towards clean energy sources at a faster pace.
The coalition of more than a dozen funders includes individual donors, family foundations and major philanthropic organisations that recognise the urgency in the climate change battle. Select funders include the Hewlett Foundation, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Yellow Chair Foundation, the Grantham Foundation and the Sandler Family Foundation.
"The single biggest reduction in carbon pollution in the U.S. has come by retiring and repurposing coal-fired power plants – and that’s the direct result of our Beyond Coal campaign," said Michael R. Bloomberg. "Thanks to the community leaders who have spearheaded this work, the US led every industrialised nation in reducing carbon emissions last year. But much more work remains, and today we are doubling down on what has proven to be an incredibly successful strategy for improving public health and fighting climate change."
